Thailand legalizes marijuana – with grey areas and reservations On May 11, Thailand`s first two full-time clinics dispensing cannabis oil for medical treatment were inaugurated. This decision is consistent with the government`s intentions to promote the authorized use of marijuana for medical purposes to treat various health conditions. These two clinics are in addition to the 25 part-time clinics that have been operating under the new law since the drug was legalized. [20] If this experiment yields promising results, the government is prepared to open two more clinics as part of a planned national network of marijuana clinics. [21] People who have used illegal and expensive medical marijuana from illegal suppliers are most likely to benefit. In addition, the FDA has authorized all Department of Health hospitals to prescribe medical cannabis to people with approved medical conditions. [22] [23] It is an extremely confusing picture in which various departments continue to say contradictory things. Despite the lack of regulation and endemic prevalence, Anutin continues to deny that recreational cannabis is legal, but says it can only be used for “medicinal purposes.” He also said that “we will not welcome marijuana tourists,” even though Thailand`s Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is considering setting up a “cannabis sandbox” that allows tourists to shine freely in certain areas. Add to that Thailand`s challenges in becoming a cannabis exporter, not to mention competition from mature markets elsewhere, facing logistical hurdles to shipping what is commonly considered a controlled narcotic.

Meanwhile, the real possibility that the law will revert to draconian bans weighs heavily on the booming industry. “Thailand will promote the policy of cannabis for medical purposes. If [tourists] come for medical treatment or for health-related products, then that`s not a problem, but if you think you want to come to Thailand just because you`ve heard that cannabis or marijuana is legal – or come to Thailand to smoke joints freely, It`s not true. The possession, cultivation, sale and consumption of cannabis was criminalised by the Cannabis Act 2477 BE (1935)[10] and again by the Narcotics Act 2522 BE (1979). [11] In 2018, Thailand became the first Asian country to legalize medical cannabis. [12] [13] But even then, the gap between regulation and enforcement in Thailand is often significant. After all, prostitution is theoretically illegal, but the country has about 250,000 sex workers in conspicuous, garish go-go bars. Whatever the law, the reality of cannabis in Thailand can drift like mist on Khao San Road. Supporters like Chokwan can only watch and wait.

“This is Thailand,” she says with a shrug. “There is no way of knowing how the authorities will act. Cannabis growers must sign up for a government app called PlookGanja or grow ganja, another nickname for the thorny leafy plant. Nearly 100,000 people have signed up for the app, said Paisan Dankhum, a health ministry official. The withdrawal of cannabis as a narcotic comes as Parliament debates a cannabis bill, which in the meantime means some confusion over how it can be used legally. Thailand on Thursday became the first Asian country to legalize marijuana cultivation and consumption in food and beverages, in a bid to boost its agriculture and tourism sector, but smoking weed in public can still violate public health laws. Thailand, which traditionally uses cannabis to relieve pain and fatigue, legalized medical marijuana in 2018. But the days of the cannabis boom may already be numbered. On August 15, the police chief of Bangkok`s Phra Nakhon district said street vendors of weed on Khao San Road were illegal and would be prosecuted. (The incentive was, somewhat oddly, that the governor of Bangkok complained about smelling cannabis while jogging nearby.) There are rumours that cannabis shops are moved to a single alley next to Khao San Road to keep them out of public view, in the same way that sex work is concentrated in certain “entertainment areas”.

Much will depend on a late law regulating cannabis use, which will be announced in the coming weeks. And extracted contents like oil remain illegal if they contain more than 0.2% tetrahydrocannabinol or THC, the chemical that gets people high.